Indian skipper Virat Kohli has been drawing flak for missing the ongoing three-day practice match against New Zealand XI. He didn’t have a great run in the three-match ODI series and the fans were expecting him to turn up for the practice match. However, the captain decided against participating in the contest – he will not be batting in the second innings as well.

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Kohli’s critics are coming down on him, saying that he might be holidaying with his wife. But that isn’t the case. Yes, Team India did take some time off earlier this week but like others, Kohli is also back to work.

Why is he missing the warm-up match?

At the time when other players were getting used to conditions, Kohli was working on his game as he practiced at nets. Kohli faced pacers Navdeep Saini and Mohammed Shami under the watchful eyes of head coach Ravi Shastri.

Kohli also took some throwdowns in the nets. His training session lasted for more than an hour. The team management knows that it’s a rare blip in Kohli’s form and he will be scoring bulk of runs during the Test series.

Hence, there is nothing to worry about. Also, he has been in New Zealand for close to a month now and knows the conditions well. His absence allowed other batsmen to make most out of the opportunity and warm up before the series.

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Players who failed to impress –

Much was expected from Prithvi Shaw and Shubman Gill but they disappointed. Both the players failed to open their account and were dismissed by Scott Kuggeleijn in his very first spell. Mayank Agarwal, who is confirmed to open the innings, managed one run before getting out.

Hanuma Vihari presented a strong case for selection with a century. He has opened in Test cricket before and is a strong contender to the job if the team management springs a surprise.